Thread by @codyave

2/14/19 | C-SPAN interview with NYT's Adam Goldman and Andrew McCabe

G: Did the FBI screw the pooch with the 2016 election?
M: I agreed with Jim's decision to notify Congress about the Weiner laptop, but in hindsight, it may have been a mistake. I think we all were overconfident in Jim's ability to convince people that we had done a good job.

G: What's your opinion of Wray?
M: I have some disagreements with Wray over how I left the Bureau.
G: It's been said that Mueller doesn't talk enough, Comey talks too much, and Wray is somewhere in the middle.
M: I think that's accurate. I think Wray needs to find that balance.

G: You seem to take a shot at Rosenstein in this chapter. It also sounds like you're angry that Steele's name leaked.
M: The FBI was focused on protecting sources, and we were struggling to comply with the expansive requests from the Hill, which Rod was central to approving.

G: Why didn't the Carter Page FISA make it into your book? How much of the Steele contributed to the FISA? Did that get it over the hump? Was Stu Evans and FISC adequately informed about the dossier?
M: I believe FISC was adequately notified. Our footnotes were very thorough.

G: Well, the buck stops with the Chief of Intelligence at DOJ, Stu Evans. You reached an accommodation with Stu in terms of transparency, right?
M: At the end of the day, the FBI and DoJ was satisfied with the package we put together, and FISC was satisfied with the package, too.

G: When you signed the October 2016 FISA application, how extensive was your vetting? What was the urgency in pushing it through?
M: There's always an urgency in getting surveillance in place when you feel you have probable cause to believe someone is an agent of a foreign power.

G: After Comey was fired on 5/9/17, you opened an obstruction case and a counterintelligence case within the FBI to lock this case down. But you didn't go to Rosenstein for approval. Why not go to him for cover?
M: Rod had almost instantaneous notice, within the 15-day window.

G: If Mueller is investigating POTUS for obstruction, and the reason you opened on POTUS was Comey's firing, how's Rod not recuse himself? Did Rod ever suggest you recuse yourself?
M: He did ask me once, regarding a photo of me wearing a political t-shirt from my wife's campaign.

G: Do you think you panicked in rushing the obstruction case against POTUS? Did you really think the DOJ was gonna stop the investigation? You can take away the prosecutors, but the files are always gonna live in the FBI.
M: That's a great question. My honest answer to it is, no.

G: On 5/16/17, there were two pivotal meetings: one in the morning, and one in the afternoon. In these two meetings, besides you, who else was pushing for a special counsel?
M: Rosenstein's Chief of Staff, Jim Crowell.

G: Providing all this info to Congress...was it worth it to protect Mueller?
M: I don't know if I agree that all of it had to be turned over to protect Mueller. Go back to May 10th...
G: I think you did this on May 15th?
M: These matters couldn't be investigated by the FBI alone.

G: Was anybody making an argument against appointing a special counsel?
M: There were people in the room that weren't convinced that we needed to do it on the timeline that I was pushing for. I dunno...it's hard for me to say. It's possible, but I don't remember that.

G: You're under investigation by a grand jury in DC for lying to federal investigators...any sense on when there's gonna be a conclusion to that?
M: I don't.
G: Do you think the US Attorney's in a pickle?
M: If they're guided by the law, then I don't have anything to worry about.